Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Teacher's Day, Mother's Day and A Sweet Gesture

Teacher's Day:Today was Teacher's Day. I didn't tell my students that it was Teacher's Day though. One of the students knew however and she shared it with all of her classmates. Today I received a wonderful present from my class. They all tried really hard to be well behaved and work their hardest. What a treat!Mother's Day:Today was also Mother's Day in Mexico. My students were quite interested in knowing if we were going to be making a special present for their moms. I hadn't even given any thought about preparing a gift this year as I have been so busy trying to prepare the kids for the test. I don't have time to waste since we are doing review work. My first thought was "Gift? I am working hard to get your ready to do well on this test. That is your Mother's Day present!" I of course didn't say that to the kids. When I calmed down, I resolved to make Mother's Day bookmarks with the students. Reading, after all, is what I have been pushing each and every day of class. I will have the kids put their pictures on the bookmarks and make fingerprint flowers on them. They can then write their own sayings and add any art that they want to them. I will laminate them and then attach a piece of yarn to them. Voila! The Sweet Gesture:After school was over we had a staff luncheon to celebrate all of the staff on our campus. As I was walking toward to cafeteria, I passed a 4th or 5th grade student. I recognized her face but didn't know her name. I smiled at me as she passed me by. About 10 seconds later I heard her calling me. She is a very shy girl so her voice was very quiet and soft. Here is what she said "Ms. V. , Feliz día de las madres." She then gave me a huge smile and turned around and went on her way. It was a very sweet moment.

How lucky I am to work with wonderful and sweet children. I am definitely glad to be a teacher!